1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air suction and blower apparatus, and more particularly to a portable, hand held, manually energized apparatus for trapping insects.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Insects have been generally controlled by the use of chemical insecticides, which insecticides were commonly applied either by spraying or dusting. However, due to the increased awareness of the harmful effects to the environment caused by the use of insecticides, many of them have been banned from general consumer use by the Federal Government. Thus, alternative methods and devices for controlling insects, which do not involve the use of dangerous chemicals, are being increasingly sought.
One known type of device for controlling insects employs flowing air to trap insects. These insect traps generally consist of a body; suction means for drawing air, and thus insects, into the body; and a container for collecting the insects. An expedient conforming to this general description is a stationary type insect trap, which trap being stationary, requires additional means to attract insects, such as a light source as disclosed in Shinner, U.S. Pat. No. 2,040,276, in Cornell, U.S. Pat. No. 3,305,965, and in Plunkett, U.S. Pat. No. 3,196,577; a noise source as disclosed in Sweet U.S. Pat. No. 1,807,076; and an odoriferous substance as also disclosed by Plunkett U.S. Pat. No. 3,196,577. Ordinarily, the suction means for stationary insect traps comprise a fan powered by an electric motor, which fan is usually located between the insect attracting means and the container. A disadvantage of stationary type insect traps is that they are often expensive and complicated, especially since they require additional means for attracting the insects. A second disadvantage is that they are usually cumbersome and cannot be moved readily from one location to another. Thirdly, in terms of the electrical energy used by the fan motor, these devices are wasteful, as they must be operated whether or not insects happen to be present.
Another well-known device is the portable type insect trap, which can be carried by the operator to locations where insects are known to exist. In addition to the general structure described above, portable insect traps usually includes an intake barrel or nozzle which can be pointed at the particular insects which are to be exterminated. One common type of portable insect trap is disclosed in Easter U.S. Pat. No. 2,304,944, in which a fan is used as an air suction device. The fan is powered by an electric motor running on household current. The obvious disadvantage of this type of portable insect trap is that it can only be used at locations where electrical power outlets are available.
A second known kind of portable insect trap also incorporates a fan powered by an electric motor; however, batteries are provided as the energy source for the fan motor. My own U.S. Pat. No. 4,074,458, filed on Feb. 23, 1976 as Ser. No. 660,711, discloses such a device, as does Arther U.S. Pat. No. 3,214,861. While this particular type of insect trap has the advantage of being more portable than the type previously described, it has the disadvantage of a limited volumetric air flow capacity. For this particular type of trap to remain portable, the batteries cannot be too bulky or heavy to make carrying this device cumbersome or difficult. Thus, the batteries which are commonly employed are not large enough to power a sufficiently sized fan at a high enough speed to generate a satisfactory air flow rate over long periods. Another limitation of this particular type of insect trap is that if it is to be used in a remote location, spare batteries must be brought along, thus increasing the weight of the load carried by the operator.
A third kind of known portable insect trap incorporates a manually operated or energized air suction source. One such mechanism, as shown in Dexter U.S. Pat. No. 454,720, and shown in Cox U.S. Pat. No. 1,141,039, includes a body in the form of an elongated cylinder, and a piston, driven by a compression spring, housed therein. When the compression spring is compressed and then released, the piston is pulled along the length of the cylinder to cause air and thus insects to be drawn into the cylinder. A disadvantage of this air suction source is that it does not operate continuously, and furthermore, must be cocked before each firing.
A second type of known portable insect trap utilizing a manually energized air suction source is disclosed by Lauen U.S. Pat. No. 1,289,825 as including a fan geared to a handle, which handle must be manually turned to create an air flow. The disadvantage of this apparatus is that it is difficult for the operator to turn the fan fast enough to create an adequate velocity of air flow. Alternatively, if a larger fan is utilized in an attempt to increase the air flow velocity rate, the overall size of the apparatus becomes larger and thus more cumbersome. The insect trap in Lauen is so large that it must be provided with a shoulder strap so an operator can carry it.
A third type of portable insect type having a manually energized air suction source utilizes a compression or flat spiral spring to turn a conventional fan. An example of such a device is disclosed in Carter U.S. Pat. No. 970,181, which device has the limitation of being rather cumbersome. Furthermore, because the fan is located between the inlet nozzle and the container, the insects are chopped by the fan with parts of the insects' bodies being deposited on the fan blade. This necessitates the time-consuming procedure of periodically having to disassemble the mechanism and manually clean the fan blade.
Also notable as being of general interest in the field of suction and blower apparatus are the following: Keiser U.S. Pat. No. 2,992,770, E. M. Sugarman U.S. Pat. No. 3,231,997, N. H. Thybault U.S. Pat. No. 3,750,327, and D. L. Nupp U.S. Pat. No. 3,758,914.